A MERSEYSIDE man has spent the last three months helping thousands of refugees left homeless by a cyclone in Bangladesh.

Chris Austin, 45, originally from Greasby, took part in the recovery operation in the aftermath of cyclone Sidr, which killed more than 3,000 people and left millions homeless.

Since it struck in November, Mr Austin, 45, who is head of the Department for International Development in Bangladesh, has been coordinating the clean-up of villages, providing clean water and rebuilding homes.

He said: “The cyclone knocked those people back five steps. Through all the work done during the last three months, three steps have been taken forward.

“There are signs of hope.

“I met a woman the other day who rebuilt her house. It is only about 3ft high, but she was very proud of it and invited me to come in.

“However, it is pretty tough and a huge effort of the Bangladesh government is needed.”

The father-of-two is a former Birkenhead School student and his parents Brian and Sybil still live in Greasby.